Monthly Archives: August 2018

The Blaster In Question #0061: Cam ECS-12

Posted by Tim Marron in Nerf Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

 

 

BlasterInQuestion1

CAM ECS-12

N-STRIKE ELITE

cam1There’s one thing that Nerf keeps trying to do that I don’t think I’ll ever understand, and that’s attaching cameras to their blasters.  They tried it with the Battlescout and that was no good, but that was hardly their first attempt at this particular gimmick.  That one also suffered because the blaster itself was pretty crap, but what if they had tried using an actually decent mechanism as a starting point.  Well, in that case, you end up with the Cam ECS-12, which I’ll be reviewing today.  Let’s check it out.

THE BLASTER ITSELF

cam2The Cam ECS-12 was released in 2014 under the core N-Strike Elite line of blasters.  It was built on the old standby semi-auto flywheel mechanism we’ve seen again and again.  The main draw was the integrated “battle cam” that could function more or less like a scope while also being able to take photos and record video of whatever Nerf shenanigans you might choose to get up to.  With the 4 buttons just below the viewing screen, you can power the camera on and off, play/pause, skip forward, and delete files.  The actual capture button is located on the left side of the blue fore-grip area so you could press it from a firing position with your thumb (or index finger for lefties).  Rather wisely, the camera is run off its own entirely separate bank of AA batteries so having the cam on or off doesn’t affect the performance of the blaster at all and the two can be operated completely independently of each other.  The down-side is that the camera is just the worst.  It only captures images and videos in a tiny square format which matches the tiny square screen on the back end.  Videos also capture sound using a built in microphone which, as you can probably imagine, sounds horrendous should you do something stupid like rev up the flywheels ever.  The video feed to the screen always shows which format (photo/video) the camera is set to and how much capacity is left on the SD card as well as a square crosshairs reticle for aiming, I guess.  None of these actually get recorded onto any photos or videos, so that’s nice at least.  Turning the camera on, you are greeted by a Nerf logo on screen and a bizarre series of sound effects which I really can’t understand what they’re suppose to be.  cam3If you don’t touch any of the camera controls for about 5 mins, the blaster will start beeping and you’ll see a countdown from 10 on the screen, at the end of which, the whole thing explodes.  I mean, the camera auto shuts off, but you still have to hear that beeping so it might as well.  The slot for the SD card is on the forward left side of the “scope” and comes with a 4GB card already installed.  There was also originally a big orange shade on my blaster above the viewing screen, but It’s not really necessary and I found it flopped around and annoyed me so I took it off.  That’s probably enough about the bad camera, let’s end on a positive note.  The shell of the blaster is all original and boy does it look good.  Sure the barrel is kinda long and that slightly reduces its performance, but it just looks so sleek.  In all honesty, if Nerf tweaked the shell to get rid of the camera, and by extension drop the price substantially, I would buy another one of these in a heartbeat.  Some Nerf designs, while cool and I love them, can feel weird and goofy in hand.  This feels like a rifle, and I like it a lot.  It definitely gives it a more aggressive feel without being cartoonish and as long as you don’t intend to actually record anything, the video “scope” can make you feel like some sort of high-tech Halo-esque cool guy when you bust into your younger sibling’s room with it.  The Cam ECS-12 comes packaged with a 12 round magazine, 12 Elite darts, and the 4GB SD card.  The blaster takes 4 AA batteries to run and the camera takes another 4.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION 

This blaster got everyone super excited when Nerf first showed it off because, let’s be honest, it just looks cool.  The thing is, people got very unexcited when they saw the $75 price tag.  As such, hardly anyone bought one.  I managed to grab mine on a Black Friday sale for much less than MSRP, but I don’t know that looks and feel alone would have made me shell out that much money.  All this just makes their later attempt with the Battlescout all the more baffling.

#1747: Red Tornado

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , ,

RED TORNADO

DC SUPERHEROES (IMAGINEXT)

Sometimes, it’s nice to remember when toys were just plain fun, and not necessarily aimed at pleasing only adult collectors.  One of the best lines out there for doing such things is Fisher Price’s Imaginext subset.  They’re definitely kid-oriented, but they’ve got some pretty amazing licenses, and the coverage of characters therein is nothing short of astounding.  They’re DC line in particular has made its way around to so many corners of the DCU, including more minor characters, such as today’s focus, the Red Tornado!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Red Tornado was introduced into the DC Superheroes Imaginext line in 2018.  He’s sold as deluxe single figure, meaning it’s just him and a larger accessory, in a similar fashion to the previously reviewed Brainiac.  The figure stands 3 inches tall and has 8 points of articulation (as with all Imaginext offerings, his legs move as one).  Red Tornado has had a few distinct looks over the years; this figure goes for his more robotic, more stylized appearance from when he was working as Young Justice’s official Justice League-er sponsor.  It’s actually one of my favorite looks for the character, so I was pretty happy about this.  His sculpt is fairly standard stuff for this product spread, with highly stylized proportions and the like.  The blank portions of the sculpt are actually even more sensible with this particular figure than they were on other characters, given the robotic design.  Interestingly, the body gets a few more robotic details that aren’t traditionally seen on this particular design for the character, though I’m really not complaining about that.  Red Tornado’s cape is a combination of sculpted and cloth elements; the collar is plastic and the actual cape cloth, which is the best possible combo.  Tornado’s paintwork is fairly basic stuff, since he’s mostly just molded in the proper colors.  There’s some slop on his collar, but he’s otherwise pretty sharp, and he’s certainly bright and eye-catching.  The extra large accessory included with this guy is a pretty sensible one; it’s a tornado effect, demonstrating his powers.  When you wheel it along the ground, it will spin the figure, which is pretty fun.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

In the midst of Toys R Us closing, I was spending a lot of time at my closest store, and by extension, I was also spending a lot of time at the Target across the street.  They began their clearance process for their big reset a few months ago, and a bunch of Imaginext stuff was included.  Imaginext is already pretty reasonably priced to start with, so on clearance it’s an absolute steal.  It was hard to say no to Reddy at that point.  I quite like this guy, and I’m quite happy to have him.

#1746: Tenth Doctor

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , ,

TENTH DOCTOR

DOCTOR WHO (BIG CHIEF)

So, this week, I’ve mostly been playing catch-up with stuff that’s been piling up, which translated to an even split between Star Wars and Marvel, two of my most frequent subjects.  Today, I’m returning to a franchise I haven’t actually taken a look at in over a year, Doctor Who!  For the past few years, Big Chief Studios has been offering up some of the Doctor’s incarnations in high-end format.  Today, I’ll be having a look at their second version of fan-favorite Doctor, Ten!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Tenth Doctor was released by Big Chief in the fall of 2015.  He’s the second version of the Tenth Doctor released by Big Chief; by the time this figure was released, the first one was going for a rather hefty sum, so it was a sensible choice.  This figure is specifically based on Tennant from Series 4, his final year on the show.  The figure stands 12 inches tall and he has 30 points of articulation…at least going by the solicitation.  The exact articulation count is a bit difficult to get what with the outfit and all.  I’m willing to trust them on this one.

A lot of the cues that this is a Series 4 Doctor come from the head sculpt, or more specifically, the hair, which is notably springy and bouncy.  The sculpt is definitely one of this figure’s strongest suits.  It’s definitely a very close likeness of Tennant, though I’m not sure that it’s quite spot-on.  It’s a little hard to tell how much of that’s the sculpt, and how much of it’s the paint.  The prototype likeness is a little closer, which leads me to think it’s a paint thing.  It’s still not far off, of course, and as far as likeness goes, it’s about on par with a Hot Toys offering.  The paint’s not terrible.  In fact, it’s better than not terrible; it’s actually quite good.  You just have to accept that Big Chief is slightly less experienced than the likes of Hot Toys and Sideshow, and as such, they won’t be 100% the same quality.  The only real difference, I think, is that there’s a little bit less life behind the eyes.  It’s definitely a very minor, very subtle thing.

Ten’s outfit is made up of seven main pieces.  There’s the jacket, pants, shirt, tie, greatcoat, and shoes.  The clothes are all pretty well-tailored to the body.  Once again, not quite Hot Toys quality, but still pretty convincing for the scale.  The main suit is probably the best work, and replicates the styling of tight, very well-fitted suit that Tennant was known to wear in the show.  The tie is a little bit bulky, but admittedly, that’s the most difficult part to get right without risking it becoming too frail.  The shoes are a sculpted piece, which plug into place; they’re a very convincing recreation of his Chuck Taylors (as someone who wears a pair everyday, I can say they’re quite authentic).  Perhaps the weakest part of the whole ensemble is the great coat.  It’s not *terrible*, but it’s a little large for him, it’s kind of shapeless, and the fabric used doesn’t look quite right.  It’s also really light; it could have used some sort of weathering or something to help it look a little more “real”.  On the plus side, it has a wire running along it’s bottom edge, which allows for some nice, dynamic posing.

Ten is actually quite well-accessorized.  He comes with the basics, of course.  There’s an assortment of hands in all sorts of poses (including one holding the key to the TARDIS), as well as a pair of sonic screwdrivers (both extended and not).  There’s also a collection of episode-specific extras, largely geared towards Series 4-specific items.  He’s got three sets of eye wear: his glasses for when he’s being investigative, a pair of sunglasses, and his 3-D glasses from “Doomsday”. The arms on the glasses don’t quite fit properly over the hair, but you can get them pretty convincingly placed on his face.  He also includes his psychic paper with a note from River Song inviting him to the Library, his FOB watch in open and closed configurations, an Adipose, and an Adipose detector.  Lastly, he includes a display stand with a light up Galifreyian symbol.  And, if you want more display options, you can even remove the front flap of his box to use as a backdrop detailing the interior of the TARDIS.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

My Doctor Who collection has largely been given to me by my Super Awesome Fiancee, and it’s been understandably limited to smaller scale items, which have allowed me a wider range of characters for my display.  Big Chief got into the game just as I was weening myself off of the higher-end stuff, so I never bought myself any of them, despite a moderate interest.  While this figure isn’t quite on the level of a Hot Toys offering, he’s still quite a satisfying figure, and definitely great if you’re a Tennant fan.

As you may have pieced together, this figure isn’t from my personal collection.  He was provided to me for review by my friends over at All Time Toys.  They’ve actually got two of him available for purchase via they’re store, should you be interesting in owning this figure for yourself.  If you’re looking for other toys, both old and new, please also check out All Time’s full eBay store front, and take a look at their webstore at alltimetoys.com.

#1745: Iron Man

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , , ,

IRON MAN

MARVEL LEGENDS (HASBRO)

“A Sleek suit design and technological upgrades let Tony Stark gear up as the Armored Avenger, Iron Man.”

I thought I was more or less done with the Infinity War-themed Marvel Legends, barring any late-game releases (which I’ve no doubt there will be), but no, no there was one more figure, that’s just been sitting there.  Waiting.  Watching.  Other “w” words as well…

Anyway, I’ve looked at most of the film’s major players, but there was one very prominent one missing, namely Tony Stark, aka Iron Man.  In a further effort to work my way through that pile of figures awaiting review, I’ll be looking at Stark’s latest Legends release today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Iron Man is the final figure in the Thanos Series of Marvel Legends, the first Infinity War-themed assortment of the year.  He’s also the last of the four specifically movie-based figures in the line-up.  And, most importantly, he’s the only figure in the set that isn’t needed to built the Thanos figure, which is why everyone was skipping him.  Tony’s wearing his Mark 50 armor from the film, which is also his *only* armor for the film, so I guess it’s a sensible choice, now isn’t it?  The figure stands 6 1/2 inches tall and he has 29 points of articulation.  His construction is very similar to the Mark 46 figure from the Giant Man series, but there are no actual pieces shared between the two.  This guy is an all-new sculpt, which does an okay job of capturing the Bleeding Edge armor’s design from the movie.  It’s not a spot-on recreation; it’s definitely not quite as sleek as the design in the movie.  There are far more pronounced ridges and connecting points, bringing its overall design closer to the Mark 46.  This is likely a symptom of Hasbro working from earlier designs to get the figure out before the movie.  Ultimately, it’s close enough that you know which armor it’s supposed to be, and it’s nowhere near as off as either Captain America or Cull Obsidian.  Fortunately, it’s got some pretty great proportions, and the articulation is also worked in pretty well.  Iron Man’s paintwork is decent and certainly eye-catching, but like the sculpt, it’s not 100% accurate.  The main culprit is the red.  It should really be a deeper, more metallic color than it is.  That being said, the color they’ve used is still nice to look at, so I’m not going to complain too much.  What I will complain about?  Just the figure’s single greatest failing: his accessories.  In the movie, Tony’s using this armor to create all sorts of nano-tech-based weaponry and tools.  What does this figure get?  An extra set of hands and the same blast effects pieces they’ve been using since the 46.  No extra attachments, no unmasked head, no build-a-figure piece.  The extra hands don’t even have hinges on the wrists.  That’s really weak.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I passed on this figure quite a few times at retail.  After seeing the movie, I was really impressed by the armor.  I had some Cosmic Cash to spend at Cosmic Comix, so I ended up grabbing him from them.  And then he sat on my shelf for three months.  I know, bad Ethan.  I’ll be honest, I actually kept forgetting I hadn’t reviewed him, since I’d already looked at the basic figure.  The only real difference between the two is posability, and that’s a little sad.  He’s a figure that could have been a lot of fun–well, okay, he’s still a fair bit of fun, but he could have been a lot more fun than he is.  As it stands, he definitely feels phoned in.

#1744: Captain America

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , ,

CAPTAIN AMERICA

MARVEL MIGHTY MUGGS

Today I’m shifting gears, but only ever so slightly.  As with the last two days, I’m doing another Mighty Muggs review, because why not?  However, unlike the last two days, this one’s not a Star Wars review.  Yes, after only having Black Panther to start with, I did finally get a second Marvel character, paragon of all that good-natured, patriotic good-ness, Captain America!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Captain America is figure 10 in the Marvel Mighty Muggs line.  That places him within the third assortment.  Cap is extra notable for being the first character in the whole relaunched line to get a second Mugg.  Who would have guessed it would be Cap?  Certainly not me.  The first Cap went for a more traditional design; this one instead gives us his Commander Rogers look, which has certainly gotten some mileage since its introduction in 2010.  It remains a favorite of mine, so I like seeing it turn up here.  Definitely a solid look.  The figure stands 3 1/2 inches tall and he has the usual movement at the shoulders, and some restricted movement at the neck.  Steve uses the basic Mugg body, with a new piece for the hair.  It’s definitely patterned after the look Chris Evans has been sporting in the movies, but there’s nothing wrong with that.  It’s a nice stylized translation of his look, and it works really well in conjunction with the painted details.  Cap, like all the other modern Muggs has three different faces, and a spring-loaded feature to show them all off.  Cap’s options include a confident smile, a goofy open-mouthed grin, and an angry teeth-bearing expression.  Of the three, my favorite’s definitely the confident smile, but all three are definitely fun.  As with the hair, all three faces appear to have some Evans influence going on.  Cap is the first of these guys I’ve reviewed to include an actual accessory: his shield!  Now, if you want to get super nit-picky, it’s a solid shield, and this costume should actually include his hard-light energy reconstruction, but that right there is a very minor thin, and if it bugs you too much, the shield can simply be removed from his hand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I had planned on grabbing the basic Captain America when he first hit, but this guy was shown off not too long after.  Given the choice, I opted to wait for this release.  I ended up grabbing him from a Walmart that had just put out a fresh case of the third assortment.  He’s I think my favorite so far of the modern Muggs.  He’s just a very good representation of the character, and given that he’s a variant, that’s really saying something.